Skiing injuries: 3 ways to avoid common injuries

Skiing is a beloved Colorado winter sport but it comes with a fair share of risk of injury. Learn 3 ways to avoid skiing injuries this ski season from Dr. Eric McCarty, Chief of Sports Medicine at UCHealth:

Avoid high risk behavior: Don’t hyper extend your legs when you fall. Instead, keep your knees flexed and don’t try to get up until you stop sliding. When you are down, stay down. Try to keep your arms up and forward as you fall. Don’t take any jumps unless you know where and how to land. When landing a jump, hit the ground with both skies simultaneously and keep your knees flexed.

Skiing is a way of life in Colorado. Unfortunately, injuries come with the territory. Dr. McCarty is passionate about helping people get back on the slopes and stay safe and healthy once they get there. He’d prefer to see you out on the chairlift rather than in his office with a ski injury. The mountain is full of obstacles, unknowns and variables so the risk of injury is always there. Keep these tips in mind this winter to protect yourself from injuries on the slope.

About the author

UCHealth is an innovative, nonprofit health system that delivers the highest quality medical care with an excellent patient experience. With 24,000 employees, UCHealth includes 12 acute-care full-service hospitals and hundreds of physicians across Colorado, southern Wyoming and western Nebraska. With University of Colorado Hospital on the Anschutz Medical Campus as its academic anchor and the only adult academic medical center in the region, UCHealth pushes the boundaries of medicine, providing advanced treatments and clinical trials and improving health through innovation.